[Ads-l] Wokeness

Shapiro, Fred fred.shapiro at YALE.EDU
Sat Jan 14 22:10:52 UTC 2023


I have a lexicographical question that is puzzling me.  The vogue use of "woke" is now well recognized.  But I don't see "wokeness," which surely has become an important word in its own right, in OED or Merriam-Webster.  It has over 3 million Google hits, and over 10,000 hits on Nexis.  "Wokeness" is in the Urban Dictionary, Wiktionary, and Cambridge English Dictionary.  According to Nexis, the word has appeared as early as Feb. 5, 2014 (in University Wire).  Why haven't the two major dictionaries picked it up yet ?

Fred Shapiro

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The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org


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